Parkson CEO Addresses Congress

Parkson CEO Zain Mahmood is asking the U.S. House of Representatives to pass legislation that would encourage private investment in crucial improvements to the nation’s water and wastewater infrastructure. In a letter to Florida Representative Alcee Hastings, Mahmood asks for his full support and co-sponsorship of H.R. 1802, the “Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act of 2011.” “This legislation (H.R. 1802) is expected to infuse $50 billion in private capital for water and wastewater projects over 10 years and create more than 1.4 million jobs,” Mahmood said. “It will offer much needed relief by encouraging the local government to work with the private sector to deliver an absolutely critical public service.” H.R. 1802 would exempt water and wastewater projects from existing volume caps on private activity bonds. Local and state governments can use the tax-exempt bonds to partner with private investors to achieve lower overall costs for infrastructure repair and construction projects, while shifting debt risk from the government entity to the private partner. In his letter, Mahmood noted that airports, intercity high-speed rail and solid waste disposal projects already have been exempted from volume caps, and the next step should be to include water and wastewater projects in those exemptions. “It is now time to allow water and wastewater projects to receive the same treatment and give municipalities the ability to leverage private capital in order to help close the $500-billion investment gap they face over the next 20 years to upgrade and rebuild the aging and overburdened water and wastewater infrastructure,” Mahmood said.